Akeal Hosein briefly gave West Indies something to cheer against England with a stunning caught and bowled dismissal, but there were grumblings that the wicket should have been ruled ‘not out’ with Hosein appearing to touch the ball to the ground before completing the catch.
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England were chasing 56 after a dominant bowling performance, and promoted several batters in an attempt to secure a potentially crucial Net Run Rate buffer. Liam Livingstone came in at No.5, and there was added build-up to his second ball with the right-hander pulling out while Hosein was in his delivery stride after some words from Dwayne Bravo at slip.
The ball was worth waiting for, with a Livingstone leading edge flying to Hosein’s left, and the spinner diving to take a spectacular catch.
With the West Indies bowler taking the grab a distance from the ground, there was some confusion over why the decision was reviewed by the on-field umpires. What needed closer inspection was whether the ball touched the ground before Hosein was in complete control over his body, as per the MCC laws. Law 33.3 states a catch is only complete “when a fielder obtains complete control over both the ball and his/her own movement” and that the ball must not touch the ground before then. Some felt that Hosein had touched the ground with the ball as he landed, and therefore that the catch should have been struck off. However, the umpires gave Livingstone out, and captain Eoin Morgan had to come in to finish the chase.
There were similarities to an incident in a New Zealand-Bangladesh T20I in March, with a return catch by Kyle Jamieson ruled out after he pressed the ball to the turf, despite initially grasping it cleanly.
Watch the controversial Hosein stunner below and make your own mind up:
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